Being a social organization goes beyond experimenting with social media technology toolsthe "provide and pray" approach. In fact, it's not about the technology at all.

A social organization addresses significant business challenges and opportunities using the social media platform to create mass collaborationwhat Gartner predicts will be the next evolutionary pillar defining how work gets done around the world.

Mass collaboration extends beyond social media to enable your employees, customers, suppliers and all other stakeholders to participate directly in the creation of value. "That, in broad strokes, is the promise of social media," declare Anthony J. Bradley and Mark P. McDonald, authors of The Social Organization, which reveals how executives from CEOs to managers can make mass collaboration a source of enduring competitive advantage in their enterprise.